WASHINGTON, July 12 (Reuters) - The U..S. Commerce Department said on Wednesday that Microsoft Inc has notified the agency that its email system has been compromised.

Microsoft said Chinese state-linked hackers secretly accessed email accounts at around 25 organizations, including government agencies, in a sweeping cyberespionage campaign by a group which primarily targets entities in Western Europe.

"Microsoft notified the department of a compromise to Microsoft’s Office 365 system, and the department took immediate action to respond," a Commerce Department spokesperson said Wednesday. "We are monitoring our systems and will respond promptly should any further activity be detected." (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler)